Starry Night

Deep purple Belgium wool boucle woven with a metallic thread is sewn on the front of this luscious purple silk dupioni stole.  It reminds me of the starry night that the wise men and shepard experienced on their journey to Bethlehem. On this particular stole, I made the reverse the same rich deep purple with no adornment, which would be perfect for Lent.

Arise!

Awake, awake O sleeper,
Arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.

Ephesians 5:14

Phoenix created by a variety of bright silks on red. Hand embroidered details.

Sing a New Song

Inspired by Psalm 98, this set of bookmark pulpit paraments are set on a background of creamy white silk, embellished with silk thread in french knots and intricate beads.

Perfect for Christmas,  Easter, weddings and funerals.

Available in my shop for immediate purchase.

Heron for Ordinary Time

"Be still and know I am God." Psalms 46:10

Hand embroidered heron and cattails rest at the base of this liturgical stole on a vivid green dupioni shantung silk. Threads used are Egyptian varigated cotton floss, wool and silk. Hand-dyed silk creates the feathers on the heron.

Ordination Day!

Blooming Joy: Floche on silk.

Beloved: A Wedding Stole

Custom stole for a minister who believes we are all "beloved". A joyful thought indeed!

Shantung silk with crystals, pearls, beads and polished shell fragments.

Ordination

Silk on silk with golden thread.

Pastoral

Hand dyed silk ribbon, floche, varigated thread on silk. 

Tau Rho Embellishment

Thousands of tiny french knots inside a border of gold thread make up this classic chi rho. The design is nine inches x nine inches on a dalmatic robe provided by the client.

Bud to Bloom

Extra Ordinary

A set of recently completed bookmark paraments for an inclusive congregation.

Embellishment

A commission to embellish a dalmatic, the design being a classic chi rho, measuring about nine inches square. I couldn't resist stitching just a bit to see if the thread color worked on this bright white!

Such tiny stitches and a lot of real estate! :)

Beautiful Batik

Red Oridination/Pentecost stole in beautiful red and white. Completely reversible and is waiting for you in my Etsy shop!

Grief

"Faith sees best in the dark."

- Soren Kierkegaard

Cremation pall detail.                                          

Fabric Manipulation: North American Smocking

I've received three inquiries about my smocking technique and wanted to share where I learned it, and some exceptional resources for you to explore. 

The photo below shows my first attempt at North American Smocking and then how I incorporated it into a stole made for a funeral.

I picked up one of the best instructional books ever: The Art of Manipulating Fabric by Colette Wolff. Absolutely the best money you will spend. If you have a hard time finding it, please try eBay or abebooks.com, as it is really worth the hunt. In it, the process, along with many more, is explained in detail.

If you would like immediate instructions I invite you to explore Black Bird Blues blog: http://blackbirdblues.livejournal.com/56295.html

They have done a great job laying out the process, which is easy and gives lovely results.

I hope that helps those of you who are inquiring!

Ordinary Joy

A custom stole for ordinary time...

Butterfly Stole - custom order

One white crisp cotton jacquard by Marc Jacobs, an organdy butterfly that was originally to have freestanding wings in silver had to be tacked down with, white mini bugle beads, due to the curl of the organdy. It turned out for the best, I think, a bit more spirited, which is more reflective of the recipient.

Custom Stole ~ A Teaching Garden

I really am thrilled to work with such great clients. My latest delivery, below, came from working with a great customer that wanted all the liturgical colors represented in one stole. The colors made me think of a garden and the flowers that would be powerful with their symbolism.

Here are a few pictures with the flowers and their meanings below...

















Bluebells~ humility, gratitude and everlasting love
Lavender ~ devotion, purity, solitude and social justice
Poppies ~ mourning, remembrance and been used to symbolize the blood of Christ
Lily ~ devotion and friendship
Thistles ~ represent the suffering of Christ
Shamrocks ~ the Trinity – St. Patrick used them as a teaching tool
Strawberries ~ I decided to add these to represent the sweetness of God’s words. They traditionally represent humility, modesty and abundance
Olive branch (leaves near strawberries) ~ peace and hope.


This was so much fun to create! Thanks S.M. For being so great to work with!

Dragonfly

Sometimes the most perfect path is choosing simplicity.

Kimono Silk Accent

I think beauty and meaning are added when vintage fabrics are elements of new art for worship. Here is an example of vintage Japanese silk previously used in a kimono in the 30's added as an accent.